Turkey’s Blue Coast & Gulet Cruise

Day 1: UK/Antalya
Your explorations of Turkey’s beautiful Blue Coast begin with a flight to Antalya, where you’ll stay for two nights.

Day 2: Antalya
Discover the wonders of ancient Antalya and its surroundings on an included full-day tour today. You’ll explore the ancient Greek city of Perge, once one of the world’s greatest cities, and Aspendos, with its incredibly well preserved amphitheater, built in the 2nd century AD. If you fancy a spot of lunch, the old harbour has a great selection of restaurants, the majority of which sell fresh seafood.

This afternoon, you’ll tour the old city and harbour of Antalya. Surrounded by impressive stone walls, Antalya’s gates could be closed against invaders, and you’ll visit the only surviving gate on your tour, as well as the Antalya Archaeological Museum, which is home to a wonderful collection of artifacts.

Day 3: Kalkan
Discover more of Turkey’s ancient history today as you journey to Kalkan, visiting Phaselis, founded in 700BC and at one time the most important harbour in the region. You’ll also visit the ancient city of Myra and the Basilica of St Nicholas – or Father Christmas as he’s known today. After a break for lunch in Demre, your journey continues, stopping for a boat trip to the island of Kekova and its sunken city. If the conditions are right, you’ll be able to see the ruins of the city through the glass bottom of the boat.

On arrival in Kalkan, check in to your hotel which is located on the edge of the bay. Enjoy lovely views as you take dinner this evening on the terrace.

Day 4: Fethiye
Today begins with a visit to the scattered ruins of Patara, the birthplace of St Nicholas and famed in antiquity for its temple of Apollo, then Xanthos, the centre of ancient Lycia. Explore the lively bazaars of Fethiye before heading to the pretty, coastal town of Göcek to step aboard your traditional gulet for a wonderful four-night cruise.

These small Turkish sailing vessels contain six to eight cabins and three or four crew members. You’ll discover a relaxed, informal atmosphere on board, and the vessel’s compact size means you can easily navigate in and out of small coves and bays along the coast. Tonight, you’ll overnight in the peaceful Hamam Bay.

Day 5: Cruise
Today there is time to relax as you cruise in and out of secluded bays, stopping to admire the beautiful surroundings and swim in Bedri Rahmi Bay, Tersane Bay and Agalimani, whilst enjoying all your meals freshly prepared on board. There’s nothing quite as relaxing as this, and the clear waters are delightfully cool in the heat of the day.

Day 6: Dalyan
Your cruise continues early this morning, arriving at Ekincik Bay, where breakfast is served. From Ekincik Bay, you’ll board a smaller boat for a journey through the Dalyan Çayı delta. Surrounded by thick vegetation and reeds, this is an incredible location, and your destination is the famous Lycian Rock Tombs, carved into the rock face above the water in around 400BC. There will also be a visit to the ruins of the ancient city of Kaunos.

You’ll return to the gulet via Iztuzu, famous for its sea turtles. Lunch will be served, then you can spend the afternoon relaxing and swimming. This evening you will be treated to a Turkish-style barbecue under the stars.

Day 7: Cruise
Enjoy your last day aboard the gulet with a cruise to Kadirga Bay, where you can spend the afternoon relaxing on the sun deck or swimming, before heading to Marmaris, where you dock overnight. After dinner, the evening is yours to do as you wish. You may choose to head into the vibrant resort of Marmaris and stop off in one of the many bars for a drink or two.

Day 8: Marmaris/UK
You’ll disembark your gulet this morning and bid the crew farewell as you head to Izmir airport for your direct flight home.

Please note
We want you to get the most from your holiday with us so please be advised that this tour is not suitable for anyone with mobility problems.

Accommodation throughout is in hotels of a comfortable standard, typical of the hotels you will stay in are:

4-star Khan Hotel Best Western Plus in Antalya
4-star Patara Prince Hotel in Kalkan
Both hotels have a restaurant and bar, as well as an outdoor swimming pool. The guest rooms all have TV, air-conditioning, balcony and safe as well as en suite facilities.

Your Gulet
Exclusively reserved for Travelsphere guests, your delux category gulet is a traditional design wooden sailing vessel complete with two masts as well as being fully motorised. Sailing in a flotilla of up to three gulets, you will find on board a main salon for indoor eating, a bar, a seating area on deck and steps for easy access to the sea. The comfortable cabins have opening windows, en suite facilities, air-conditioning and hair-dryers.

Using fresh ingredients, your chef will provide a choice of Turkish and Mediterranean cuisine. Afternoon tea and snacks and bottled water with your meals are included. Wine and spirits can be purchased from the bar.

Hotels will be confirmed in your final documentation.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Included excursions and visits

Antalya, Perge & Aspendos
Ancient Cities of Phaselis and Myra
Sunken City of Kerkova
Patara & Xanthos ancient ruins
Lycian rock tombs and ancient city Kaunos

Your holiday includes

Scheduled flights
Overseas transfers and other transportation
3 nights’ hotel accommodation on a half-board basis
4 night cruise including all meals
The services of a Travelsphere Tour Manager
Hotel porterage (one bag per person)
All airport taxes and security charges
UK Airline Passenger Duty
All state and local taxes

With 50 years’ experience in arranging escorted tours to exciting destinations across the globe, Travelsphere have built an excellent reputation founded on quality and value.

By choosing a Travelsphere escorted holiday you can travel with confidence, knowing that every aspect of your holiday has been carefully planned and arranged from start to finish. Further to this they are ATOL bonded and members of ABTA.

Travelsphere’s thorough planning of travel arrangements, itineraries and accommodation combined with the unique insight of their knowledgeable Tour Managers and Local Guides will enable you to experience the culture, traditions and hidden away places less accessible to other travellers.

Our Opinion
“Travelsphere are one of the biggest names in the Escorted Tour market. Finely tuned over the last 50 years their tours have been tried, tested and refined by thousands of customers.”